


Aaron Burr On Your Side

by underneaththepleasure



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Anxiety, Anxiety Attacks, Corporal Punishment, D/s, Discipline, Dom/sub, Eating Disorders, Help, Hurt/Comfort, Intimacy, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Non-Sexual Bondage, Non-Sexual Dominance, Non-Sexual Submission, Pain, Possible Eventual Relationship, Praise Kink, Spanking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-11 00:54:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7017859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/underneaththepleasure/pseuds/underneaththepleasure
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Aaron Burr moves back to New York to work as an accountant, he runs into his old colleague Alexander Hamilton in a coffee shop and learns that they work only a block away from each other. The intense dark circles under Hamilton's eyes don't escape Burr's notice, nor does the fact that his jacket looks ready to slide off of his bony shoulders. </p><p>Aaron Burr offers him a deal that Alexander Hamilton cannot refuse, because even through all of their differences, Aaron Burr was always on his side.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. When Did You Last Sleep, Alexander.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello friends. This isn't my first fanfiction, but it is my first Hamilton fic and it is also my first on this website. Be kind, give lots of feedback and tell me what you'd like to see - I can't guarantee I'll use it but it may hatch an idea in my brain. Enjoy!

     Alexander Hamilton. This brilliant, complicated, stressful, one of a kind human being seemed to be at the front of his thoughts day in and day out ever since learning of their close proximity in regard to workplaces. Aaron Burr didn’t understand it - the two could barely stand to sit in the same classroom in their early days, so he didn’t understand why he had been so thrilled to see the other man waltz into the coffee shop Aaron frequented two days before.  
     “Burr?” the genius man had blurted, a large grin on his face. “I thought you were living in Virginia?”  
     “I missed the city,” Aaron had responded with a smile as he accepted Hamilton’s embrace. _And some of the people, too, it seems,_ his mind teased him. Hamilton looked good - though it never slipped his notice how dark the skin under his eyes were, or how his coat hung off of his shoulders like it was two sizes too big. Aaron was surprised at the wave of concern he felt for the man and forced it down immediately.  
     “I'm working at the accounting firm about a block from here,” Aaron spoke up, wanting to continue speaking with the man and also to stop focusing on how poorly his acquaintance was taking care of himself.  
     Hamilton lit up at this. “No kidding! I work as a secretary for the governor two buildings down - Jefferson Accounting, right?”  
     “Yeah, I started just last week!” It felt so good to speak with someone on his own level. As often as they'd butted heads in college, Aaron had always admired Alexander. The younger man bit back a yawn and thanked the barista as she handed him a white paper cup, no doubt filled with caffeine that Hamilton clearly needed. Aaron couldn't help himself: “When was the last time you slept, Alexander?”  
     Alex laughed and looked away sheepishly. He sipped his coffee before answering. “I've been extremely busy. Governor Washington keeps me very busy and I can't let sleep keep me from making him proud.” He paused and looked uncomfortable at the word he'd chosen. “Satisfied. I want him to be satisfied with my work. My job is a hard one to hold onto.”  
     Aaron simply nodded. Something was off about him but he didn't want to push it.  
     Alexander let the tension slide off of him and became excited once more. “After I get off at 8, I don't work until tomorrow evening. Why don't you come over for drinks? I'd really love to catch up.”  
     “I would like that a lot,” Aaron replied honestly with a smile. A tiny flush of color lit up Hamilton’s cheeks and Burr found it amusing.  
     “Put your number in my phone and I'll text you the directions.” Aaron complied and put his number in the younger man’s phone. They said their goodbyes and just like that Aaron was alone again. The barista called out his name: “Aaron Burr, sir?”  
     “Thank you very much,” he answered, accepting the hot tea and shoving a ten dollar bill in the tip jar.

* * *

 

     It was all he could think about later that evening.  
_Sleep should never be something someone considers a nuisance,_ Aaron thought to himself. That was a dangerous thought pattern to possess. Aaron hated all of these protective feelings that started to take root in his heart. Hamilton was a grown man; he did not need a man whom hadn't spoken to him in nearly 10 years to start fussing over him like a mother hen.  
_You mean like a proper Dom?_ Again, Burr hushed the antagonizing voice. That wasn't him anymore. He found himself shushing that voice over and over as he stood outside of Alexander’s impressive home. His hand hesitated, but he forced the flood of unexpected butterflies down and knocked three times, briskly but not forcefully. Faintly, he could hear the sound of rushed footsteps growing near, growing in hurriedness as they approached him. They stopped as the man reached the door, and Burr was surprised that Hamilton was hesitating, though not upset - he was glad that he himself wasn’t the only one in the pair that was having nervous feelings. Finally the door swung open to reveal the wide-smiling face of Alexander Hamilton.  
     Burr forced - very much against his own will - away the hard-hitting wave of concern he felt as he again noticed just how exhausted Alex looked. _Exhausted is not the right word,_ he corrected himself. This man looked far more than simply exhausted - malnourished, tortured, dead on his feet; the worst part of it was knowing that the man had probably done this to himself. His mind suddenly reminded him of an odd conversation he’d picked up on during their college years:

 _‘Alex, you need to eat,’ a concerned John Laurens begged his best friend. Alexander looked up from his laptop and eyed the tuna sandwich John pushed toward him with a touch of disdain._  
_‘If I don’t finish this essay in the next hour I’m done for.’_ _John was not impressed. ‘If you don’t eat this sandwich in the next five minutes, you’re done for, Alexander. We’ve talked about this. Eating is not an option.’_ _That seemed to grab Alexander’s attention. With a heaving sigh, he closed the laptop and dug into the sandwich. John, looking very pleased, turned his attention back to his plate of chicken and mashed potatoes._

     Aaron had thought it odd that a grown man needed to be reminded to take care of himself. He thought it even more so now seeing that this same man still didn’t seem to possess this important habit. “I’m glad you came, come on in,” Alexander greeted him, pretty much bouncing with energy. _Nothing’s changed,_ Aaron thought with a small smile. _All unbridled energy, all the time._  
     “Nothing would have stopped me, believe me,” shaking his friend’s hand. “You’ve certainly done well.”  
     Alexander blushed slightly as he looked around his home. “I made good money as a lawyer,” he explained, “and I put most of it away to be able to live somewhere as nice as this. I make a healthy amount working with Mr. Washington as well, though not quite as much.”  
     Aaron nodded as he took in the house once more. It really was beautiful. “So, drinks?”  
     “Ah, yes!” Hamilton looked as if he’d been smacked in the face as he remembered what they were here for. “I’m so scatter brained, I’m so sorry.”  
     “Think nothing of it,” Aaron laughed. He became a little more serious as he tacked on, “Though you’d probably have an easier time if you slept a little more.”  
     Alexander looked as if he were about to make some excuse. Aaron raised an eyebrow.  
     Sighing, the younger man said, “Do you remember John Laurens?”  
     Aaron nodded. “You’re best friend from college.”  
     “And Eliza?”  
     “Eliza Schuyler? You fancied her if I remember right, I more so fancied her older sister.”  
     Alexander laughed slightly at the memory. “Eliza and I were very close. John and I were closer...if you catch my drift?”  
     Aaron couldn’t help the little snort that come out of him. “Alexander, if you’re gay, you can just say so. I have no judgement to pass; I had a pretty long relationship with a man right out of college. Both sexes are just too intriguing to have to stick to one.”  
     Alexander blushed but nodded his agreement. He grabbed a glass container filled with amber liquid and poured two drinks. He pushed one toward Aaron. “John and Eliza were both incredible to me. They both made sure I took care of myself and loved me at my worst. Eliza got married, and her and her husband - Hercules Mulligan, if you’ll believe it - moved off to New Hampshire. John and I had a great run, we dated for four years.” He paused and looked like he didn’t exactly know how to proceed. Aaron didn’t rush him. He laid his hand across Hamilton’s arm from across the counter and gently squeezed. Alex smiled his gratitude. He continued, “As much as we do really love each other, I’m just too much of a handful. I can’t take care of myself, and it was stressing him out too much to always be making sure I’d eaten and slept.”  
     “You haven’t reached out for help?” Aaron asked him, surprised.  
     Alexander laughed harshly, and answered, “No one wants to help a grown-ass man learn to develop basic health habits that he should’ve learned in elementary school.”  
     Aaron Burr breathed hard through his nose and leaned on his elbows, studying this man he hadn’t seen in almost 10 years. They’d never been friends, though Burr had admired the passion Hamilton always poured into whatever task was at hand. He couldn’t ignore the pull he felt toward Alexander; he didn’t know what kind of pull it was, but he figured he’d find out in time. Aaron thought about the last time he’d been a dominant in a relationship... _three years? Shit. Can I still do this?_  
     “Burr?” a confused voice dragged Aaron out of musings.  
     “Alexander, I think we need to talk.”  
     “About?” Aaron didn’t miss the touch of worry in Alex’s voice.  
     “About you. And me. About something I think, if you really consider it, you would benefit greatly from.”  
     Hamilton blinked at him, clearly very lost.

     "Alexander, what do you know about dominance and submission?”


	2. Think It Over, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit long, and maybe too wordy. I really don't know. Let me know what you think. I really do appreciate feedback. Is it flowing naturally or does their conversation seem forced? Help.

_ Is this man insane? It’s Aaron Burr, of course he’s not insane. This is the guy who graduated Princeton at 16. Intelligence doesn’t translate into sanity, does it? He looks really serious. He’s staring right into my soul. That isn’t possible. Hamilton, open your mouth, for God’s sake.  _

    “Um...I’m sorry, Burr, can you say that one more time?” 

    “I think you heard me clearly by your reaction, Alexander.” 

    Alexander cleared his throat. “Well, Burr, I know a bit but somehow I don’t think my knowledge on the matter will compare to yours.” 

    “You’re probably correct. I know how much you love to talk - can you promise to let me share my piece before interjecting?” 

    Hamilton looked ready to argue, but Aaron held up a hand. “Please - yes or no, Hamilton.” 

    Though not looking very happy at being silenced, he nodded his understanding. Aaron began to make his case. “I’m a private man, you know this very well. You’ve called me out on it many times. I’m going to share this bit of information with you because from what I’m seeing, you’re going to kill yourself by placing far more stress on your mind and your body than is necessary.” He raised an eyebrow at Alexander and he nearly interjected, but the younger man successfully silenced himself. Aaron snorted. “Good boy. Anyway, straight out of college, I entered a relationship with another young man, as I mentioned. Let’s call him Steven.” He smiled as he remembered the man, and the impact he’d had on his own life. “Steven was wonderful, but he saw something in me that drawed me to him. He was a dominant, and he saw that I too had dominant qualities, I just wasn’t using them. I was very ready to go wherever the wind took me, as you remember.” 

    Alexander couldn’t help the tiny chuckle that escaped him. “Yes, I figured you remembered,” Aaron continued, eyeing the man warily. “We entered our relationship knowing we never wanted it to be long term. He made it clear what he was about, and I found it incredibly intriguing. I was the submissive, but I was being trained to be a dominant.” Aaron paused and made sure Alexander was listening closely to his next statement. “We never once had sex with each other during this period.” 

    Hamilton went from curious and cautious to completely shocked. “What? Why not? What in the world -” 

    “Alexander, your promise?” Aaron reminded him. Alex looked ready to bounce out of his chair but did close his mouth. He rested his face in his hands and watched Aaron like a hawk, urging Aaron with his eyes to continue with his story. Aaron complied. 

    “Steven didn’t want me to think that sex had to be apart of an arrangement like ours. It certainly can - but it never has to. For six months, we never once acted on a single sexual urge. It was purely training. That training readied me to help several individuals in the past 10 years as the dominant counterpart to their submissive needs.” 

    Holding up a hand yet again to silence Alexander’s questions, he added one more statement: “You  _ do  _ have submissive needs. You need help, Alexander; the way you’re living is so unhealthy. You’re going to work yourself into a grave if you keep on like this. I can help you.” Aaron put his hand down. “You can talk now.” 

    Words exploded out of the man as if he hadn’t spoken in years. “What makes you think I have submissive needs? I’m still alive, aren’t I? Why in the world did you agree to a relationship like that? Is it really all that great? Are you interested in me? There’s no way you want to this just to help me. You’ve never liked me. I was surprised you even said hello to me, let alone hug me and agree to come over for drinks - what’s the catch, Burr? What is really going on?” 

    Aaron had to take a second to recover at the list of questions and accusations. Taking a deep breath, he did his best to answer everything. “Well, first and foremost, you’re kidding yourself if you don’t think you need any help. You’re far too smart to convince yourself of something so stupid.” Alexander glared at him but had to nod his agreement. “Second, I agreed because I wasn’t a stranger to the lifestyle. I’d never been involved directly, but I’d read a lot about it during a night when I had nothing better to do and accidentally stumbled upon in on the internet. I knew I could back out whenever I wanted to, so I went for it.” 

    “And me? Why are offering this to me?  _ Is  _ that what you’re doing?”

    Aaron nodded calmly. “That’s exactly what I’m offering. I’m interested in you as a friend, Alex, as I hope you’re interested in me. And while I understand why you might have thought so, I never disliked you. We butted heads, yes, all the time - but I have always admired you, probably more than any other man. It’s because of that admiration that I want to help you.” 

    Alex looked more inquisitive than Burr had ever seen him - and for the first time in his entire life, he bore witness to a speechless Alexander Hamilton. 

    Aaron Burr downed the last bit of his drink. “Think it over tonight,” he suggested. “You have my number, call me if you must. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.” 

    “Wait, where are you going?” Hamilton finally spoke, following Aaron to the front door. Aaron only threw back a “You’ll see soon enough.” 

* * *

 

    Ten minutes later, Alexander heard the brisk three knocks on his front door that he’d heard barely an hour before. 

    This time, it was even harder for him to answer. He hated that his mind couldn’t come to a decision about what he thought of Burr’s offer. He’d never felt so...a hundred words to finish that sentence all fought for the place. His hand stilled on the doorknob. His mind never stilled, and he doubted if it ever would after the things Aaron Burr had forced him to think about. 

_ As if I wasn’t stressed out enough, now I have to make a decision that doesn’t even sound plausible to make. I hate Aaron Burr. No, you don’t. Not even a little bit. He’s trying to help. Am I basically agreeing to abuse? What am I agreeing to? Am I even going to agree to it?  _ The realization hit him like a bus.  _ I am. I am going to agree to this. I don’t have a choice anymore, this has gotten out of hand.  _ He pulled the door open as Aaron was about to knock once more. 

    “Sorry,” Hamilton said with a grimace. He looked down at Aaron’s hands, which were holding two bags of what looked like takeout. “You bought me takeout?” 

    “I bought  _ us  _ takeout,” Aaron corrected, stepping past his colleague. “You need to eat.” 

    Alexander stood frozen. Burr didn’t notice until he’d set everything on the counter and looked up to see why Alexander hadn’t followed him. 

_ I can’t. I can’t eat with him, I’ve already consumed 1,098 calories today. That’s enough to live off of. I’m fine, I’m fine, just breathe, Hamilton, you are fine -  _

    “Alexander? Alexander, look at me, buddy,” a gentle voice broke through his thoughts. Burr grabbed Alex’s hands and placed them on his chest. “Feel me breathe, Alex, and follow; in, out, very slowly.” They stood like that, breathing as one, completely silent for a couple minutes. When Alexander came back from the panic attack, he realized he was resting up against Aaron, forehead against chest, and a large hand was petting his hair. 

    “I’m so sorry,” Alex said shakily. He needed to move but his body betrayed him as he soaked up the attention. Aaron Burr only pulled him closer. 

    “I’m going to arrange a contract tonight,” Burr told him. “It’s not to bind you to anything - it’s simply to let you know what will and won’t be acceptable in our arrangement. It’s also to open up communication over what you’re comfortable with. Certain things will have to stay in place for it to work, but you do have a say. I want you to understand that you will always have a say, but I may need to step in if you aren’t making the right decisions. Does that make sense?”

     Alex nodded into his shoulder and took a deep breath before stepping out of the embrace. Aaron kept him standing in front of him and looked very seriously into Hamilton’s eyes. “I need you to be straight with me, Alex. Was that a reaction to the food?” Alex could only nod. Aaron sighed, and gave his friend’s shoulders a gentle squeeze. “We’ll get through this, I promise. Let’s talk more about this in the morning, ok?” 

    Not waiting for an answer, Aaron led him over to the counter. “Do you think you can manage a couple bites of chicken for me?” He opened the container and let the savory smell of teriyaki chicken fill the room. When it hit Alex’s nose, his heart raced with anxiety but he couldn’t ignore the intense pain in his stomach that begged him to just eat  _ something.  _

    Aaron put a single scoop of the chicken into the middle of a large plate, wanting his portion to look as small as possible. “If you can eat this for me, I’ll buy you coffee tomorrow. I know how you survive on coffee.” 

    Alexander chuckled at that. “Alright. I’ll do my best.” 

    Aaron didn’t let the intense relief show on his face. He waited until Alexander had taken a bite to start up conversation. “So, how did you meet George Washington? I doubt he’d hire just anyone.” 

    Alex smiled at that. “You’re very right; however, he did actually hire me on the spot. He witnessed me get in a pretty heated debate with one of his co-workers and saw a lot of potential in me. I won’t stay a secretary forever, I’ll get promotions as the months pass. I’m a pretty good writer, I’ve been told. Washington uses that to his full advantage. Don’t get me wrong, I love the man, but he really does work us hard. I don’t really mind it all that much…” He trailed off when he saw the way Aaron was watching him. “What? What did I say?” 

     “You ate all your chicken already,” Burr replied, unable to keep from grinning. 

    Looking ready to throw up, Aaron quickly added, “I am so proud of you, Alexander.” 

    Alexander turned pink and smiled, muttering a small thank you. Not wanting him to have the opportunity to think about it any longer, Aaron quickly ushered him out of the kitchen and toward the hallways. 

    “Is it too much to ask you to get some sleep?” Aaron tried. Alex grimaced. 

    “I have too much to do, I need to write some correspondence letters and look over Mr. Washington’s itinerary for the week and make sure everything’s in order -”

    Burr held a hand up. “I understand you’re very busy. Can you please just try to at least get in 5 hours?” 

    Alexander, sensing the man would keep bothering him about it, forced a smile and nodded. He didn’t realize that Aaron Burr could see right through his lie, or that Aaron made a mental note of exactly how Alex looked when he was lying. Aaron simply responded with, “I hope you understand that I don’t react very kindly when I’m lied to.” He grabbed his dinner and wished Alexander a good night before showing himself out of the house. 

    The second the door closed, Alexander took off like a rocket to find his phone. Quickly dialing the very familiar number, he prayed that his dearest friend would answer the phone. 

    The phone rang twice before a sweet, feminine voice filled his ears. “Alexander, you cannot fall off of the face of the earth for months and months on end and then decide to call me at 11 at night.” 

    Grinning, he answered, “I’m so sorry, Eliza, but it’s rather important. Can you talk for just a minute?” 

    His grin only grew at her indignant huff. “Yes. It’d better really be something, Alex.” 

    “I would certainly categorize it as such. Do you remember Aaron Burr? Of course you do, stupid question…” 

* * *

  
  


    40 minutes later, Hamilton finally hung up the phone. He reclined back into the sofa, feeling stumped. Eliza had been completely on Burr’s side. Neither of them could come up with a single good reason to decline his offer. She’d made a lot of irrefutable points, much to Alexander’s dismay. She’d also brought up a little fact that Alexander had  _ not  _ considered when he and Aaron had been talking: “You know that typically a huge part of that kind of relationship is physical punishment, right? Your bottom is more than likely going to end up on the receiving end of something or other quite a lot with your record of stubbornness.” 

    That statement making him uncomfortable, Alex had been quick to change the subject. 

    Alex would later credit it to a great of deal of things unrelated to wanting to make Aaron Burr proud, but for some reason or another, Alexander Hamilton fell asleep on his sofa at 11:58PM, the earliest he’d gone to bed in over 4 years. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter will be up tomorrow afternoon, I promise.


	3. Let Me Help You, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a word of warning, this whole chapter is devoted to dialogue and coming to an understanding. The next chapter will be far meatier in terms of content, I promise. This chapter needed to exist simply to set the expectations in Burr and Hamilton's upcoming relationship. Enjoy!

    Sunlight pouring through the open blinds awoke a very sleepy Alexander Hamilton the following morning. He checked his watch - 8:34AM. _I slept for almost nine hours? I can't remember the last time I slept that much._ He hoped he'd feel the difference later on in the day because all he felt now was entirely groggy. He sat up and stretched, discovering a little crick in his neck. _I suppose that's what I get for sleeping on the sofa and not in an actual bed._

    His stomach rumbled, but he opted for coffee. Alex checked his phone while he brought a kettle of water to a boil. There were two texts. The first was from Eliza, simply telling him how nice it was to hear from him and asking that he keep her posted on what happens between him and Burr. The second was from Aaron Burr himself.

_To A. Ham from A. Burr, Monday, 7:39AM_ _: Hoping you were able to get a few hours of sleep in. Text me when you're awake, I'd like to meet up to discuss our arrangement further. My place works as well as your place, whatever makes you comfortable. A. Burr_

     Hamilton was amused at how eloquent the man sounded even over text. He quickly typed out a reply:

_To A. Burr from A. Ham, Monday, 9:02AM_ _: Good morning, Mr. Burr. As crazy as it feels to type it, I did end up sleeping a whole lot more than I have in a while. I don't know if thanks are in order but I'm offering them anyway. I won't be working until my meeting at 8 tonight, so you can just head over here whenever works for you. A. Ham_

     Alexander combined a half teaspoon of sugar and a splash of hazelnut creamer to his coffee and went to sit down at his laptop. He mindless massaged the tight muscle in his neck while he checked emails and caught up on the latest news. His phone buzzed, revealing a new text from Aaron.

_To A. Ham from A. Burr, Monday, 9:17AM:_ _That's wonderful to hear, good work. I hope to see the evidence of your being well-rested when we meet today. Will 11 work? Please nibble on something for breakfast. I won't force you to eat lunch. I'm picking up coffee on my way over, what do you want?_

    Alexander pushed down the annoyance at being told to eat and simply typed down his agreement to the time and what he wanted to drink. Moments later, the man texted back and inquired about breakfast. Annoyance at full blast, he texted back without much thought:

_To A. Burr from A. Ham, Monday, 9:27AM:_ _I'll do my best, ‘mother.’ Are you always this nit-picky?_  

_To A. Ham from A. Burr, Monday, 9:29AM:_ _You'll do well to drop the attitude before I arrive. Are you always this disobedient?_

    As much as it wounded Alexander's pride, he dropped the subject and didn't text back. In the time he waited for Burr to arrive, he made 3 phone calls, wrote 4 articles for the _New York Times,_ engaged in a heated Twitter battle with an anonymous user of whom Alexander was certain to be an undercover Thomas Jefferson, did as much research on D/s as possible and ate half a piece of toast. He'd smeared peanut butter on the small slice to make the meal last longer in his system.

    At 10:57, the brisk three knocks echoed throughout the quiet house. Hamilton stopped typing and remembered he had a reason to be nervous, and the nausea hit him full force. He took deep, calming breaths on the way to the door and forced himself to open it right away this time.

    Aaron stood on the other side with a drink carrier balanced in his right hand and flowers in the other. He laughed out loud at Alex’s completely perplexed expression. “I figured you probably worked yourself into a frenzy and I wanted to bring you something to lighten your mood,” Aaron explained. “I hope you like stargazer lilies.”

    A smile blossomed across Alex’s face. “I love them, actually! Thank you so much, Aaron.” He took the flowers and gave the older man a one-armed hug, careful not to knock over the drinks. They both made it into the kitchen and sat on the bar stools, the easy mood between them accentuated by the abundance of natural light flooding in through the open windows.

    “I love spring,” Alex commented, clearly enjoying the sounds of birds singing and the lovely flowers that now brightened up his kitchen.

    Burr smiled with him and nodded his agreement. Not wanting to ruin the mood but also not wanting to drag out the situation any longer, Burr pulled a folded up piece of paper from his back pocket. He flattened it out and looked up at his younger friend. “You've thought about what we discussed?”

    Alexander held back a sigh and nodded. “I came to the conclusion that I don't really have another option, unless I want to end up in the hospital someday. I even called Eliza and asked her about it - she is very much on your side.”

    Aaron was quick to correct him. “First and foremost, Alexander, we are not on opposing sides. This is happening _because_ I'm on your side. I want to help you, I don't want to pick on you. Is that how you feel?”

    “No! God, no, not at all. It's just…” Alex paused and rubbed his eyes, feeling exhausted all of the sudden. “This is very new and hard for me to come to terms with. I'm glad you're on my side.” He finished his sentence with a small smile, this one not forced but almost bashful.

    Aaron, satisfied with the explanation, replied, “I'm glad you had someone to talk to about it. That was brave of you, honestly. This isn't an easy subject to bring up to people who haven't had the same experience.”

     Alex blushed slightly at the compliment but shrugged it off. Aaron decided to start mapping out what Alexander needed to understand.

    “Again, I ask that you wait to ask any and all questions until the end, unless you get lost or you feel it genuinely cannot wait. Understood?” Alex nodded firmly. Aaron decided not to prompt for a ‘Yes, sir’ since the two were not in a scene and it was not something they'd discussed. He continued, “The first and most important aspect of this arrangement is trust. If I cannot trust you to be honest with me, things will be increasingly troublesome and frustrating for you. I doubt you want me to require you to provide proof of every little thing I've asked you to do. If you cannot trust me, the entire arrangement is pointless - you _must_ trust my judgement. I will be sure to explain my decisions and the practices we'll be partaking in completely so that you understand. They will not always be pleasant, but that's kind of the point.”

    Aaron could see that Alexander was already looking uncomfortable. “Do you need to ask me something?”

    “Eliza told me that...physical punishment is something you might consider,” Alex tried to say without his voice giving away his nervousness. Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful.

    Aaron Burr tried to explain his answer as kindly as possible. “Physical punishment will almost always be the route I take. It's not because I want to hurt you, and there will always be aftercare when your punishment is over. Pain is a language we all can understand; it's the easiest way for both of us to get the message across that your behavior was unacceptable and is not to be repeated. I will never cause permanent damage; I'd rather spend my life in prison then do that to someone.”

    Taking his small nod as the OK to continue, Aaron did so: “The second is communication. I am going to need to learn your limits. In all honesty you and I do not know a lot about each other. You’ll have safewords in place to keep me updated on how you’re handling a scene. If I ask you ‘color,’ you will answer with green, yellow, or red. Do you know how these work?”

    The younger man nodded. “Green is go ahead, yellow is check in and make sure everything’s okay for both of us - kind of like a pause - and red is stop all together, immediately.”

    Aaron nodded. “As we begin to work on your behavior, it is likely that you’ll need to use ‘yellow’ pretty often. This isn’t going to be easy, for either of us. It’s going to be stressful at first, but I can promise you with every fiber of my being that it will be worth it.”

    Alexander let the words wash over him and took many calming breaths. He almost felt dizzy. He felt Aaron place a hand over his and rub gently. “Do you or do you not want to start taking care of yourself?”

    Alex let out a breathy laugh. “The fact that I’m even considering this should answer your question.” He rubbed his eyes, the grogginess from the morning wearing off almost completely. Finally, he gave the persistent man an answer. “Yeah, Aaron Burr, let’s give this a try.”

    The relief in Aaron’s features was obvious, causing another slight laugh from the younger man. “I still don’t understand why you want to help me so badly,” Alexander said while shaking his head in disbelief.

    “Someone with so much potential needs to keep themselves alive for as long as possible,” Burr stated firmly. “You have far too much to offer this world, I’m not letting you work yourself into an early grave.”

    “If you make me blush one more time,” Alex said while laughing, “that alone will work me into an early grave.” Becoming serious once more (a feeling he wasn’t accustomed to but one that he seemed to be coming back to in the last 24 hours), he asked, “How long do think we’ll do this?”

    Burr rubbed his chin. “Honestly, that’s really hard to dictate. You’re a stubborn man with a lot of drive, so it could be anywhere between 3-9 months,” he said cautiously. Alexander didn’t seem to mind - his brain seemed to be elsewhere.

    “Did you want to move in?”

    “Into your home?”

    “Yeah, I don’t see how you’ll be able to really enforce good habits if I’m on my own all the time.”

    Heart warming at Hamilton’s openness to the situation, Burr answered, “If that’s something you think will be the best for you, I don’t see a problem with it. It won’t be permanent, because I need to you start eventually making good decisions with my hand looming over you, but for the first few months I think that’s a very smart idea.”

    Alex smiled and nodded. “There are 6 open rooms on the second floor, feel free to pick out whatever one suits you best. My bedroom is the third floor - it’s all one room, it’s very large.”

    Aaron nodded, taking in the small bit of information about the house. He didn’t quite understand _why_ the single man with no children had purchased such a large home, but he figured he’d learn in time. He continued to think as Alexander offered to make them both more coffee. He raised an eyebrow at the man. “Haven’t you already had two cups this morning?”

    Alex shrugged sheepishly in response. He lit up as he remembered, “I did eat toast and peanut butter this morning.”

    Letting the pride show clearly on this face, Burr said, “That’s a very good start, and I didn’t even need to remind you twice - that’s the kind of thing that will earn you a lot of reward.”

    Alex fluttered his eyelashes and flipped his hair dramatically, prompting a chuckle from the older man. As much as this whole situation had taken him by surprise, Alexander couldn’t help but to feel a little gratitude and anticipation take root in his heart. If he was truly honest with himself, this insane twist in his life story was a relief. His breakup with John had really cemented the idea in his mind that Alexander Hamilton was just one person who’d never learn how to take care of himself. The way Aaron Burr had waltzed right into his life with such a strong desire to change his bad habits gave him hope. He watched Burr mindlessly fiddle with his phone and just shook his head.

    Alex only hoped he wouldn’t disappoint him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to winteronyxnight and Smiley101 for the incredibly kind feedback. :)


	4. Learn to Follow Instruction, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Alex IS punished in this chapter.

     _Bzzzzzz. Bzzzzzz. Bzzzzzzz._

    The insistent buzzing pulled one tuckered out Aaron Burr out some much needed rest. He'd spent the day packing and unpacking his belongings and moving into Alexander's home. Whoever was calling had better have a damn good reason for doing so at 1 in the morning. Looking at the caller ID, he was immediately alert upon realizing who it was and what hour they were calling. Tapping the accept button, he answered, “Alexander? Why aren't you at the house?”

    “Hey, Burr, I just need a favor,” a sheepish sounding Hamilton responded. “I went out with a couple of work buddies and I drank more than I thought I was gonna.”

    Internally cursing, Aaron shot back, “You don't sound completely intoxicated, at least. Where are you?”

    “Laf’s Sports Bar. It's a couple a’ minutes from work…”

    “I know where it is. I'll be over soon.”

    “Please hurry.”

    “...Why?”

    “I think I'm about to get in a fight.”

    “Alexander Hamilton, don't you _dare-”_

“Sit down, John, you fat mother-” The line went dead and Aaron cursed again, this time vocally. He shot out of bed and threw on a pair of jeans before racing down the stairs. Grabbing his keys and forgoing real shoes for slippers, Aaron wasted no time in locking up the house and starting up the car.

     _It looks like we'll be having to have a discussion sooner than I'd hoped,_ Aaron mused as he drove as fast as could without inviting a speeding ticket. _Tomorrow morning will be an interesting one._

    He pulled into Laf’s parking lot and wasted no time getting into the bar, the bouncer preoccupied with the chaos that was ensuing inside the building. He watched in horror as terrified patrons ducked out of the way of flying chairs, glasses, trays - anything that Alexander Hamilton and who Burr recognized as John Adams. The two bouncers tried with little success to subdue the men causing so much trouble but they were too vicious.

    Aaron stayed low as he crept up toward Adams, and placed a hard, solid punch in the man's jaw, knocking him out instantly.  

    The silence that followed was deafening. Not a single footstep could be heard, all eyes focused on Burr.

    “Aaron?” A very astounded sounding Hamilton called out.

    Aaron stared him down, “Not another word.”

    Alex shut his mouth and looked down at his shoes. A man popped up from behind the counter, all wild hair and wide eyes. He looked at Aaron and asked, “You are Alexander’s new roommate, oui?”

    Aaron gave him a curt nod. The Frenchmen looked relieved.

    “Please take him home. Have him call me tomorrow, for now please just get him out of here.” Something in his voice told Burr that the man knew something but Burr couldn't focus on that right now. He glanced at his name tag: _Lafayette._ Realization hit him; _Laf is the owner. Alexander and him are best friends._

    Aaron nodded again and quickly ushered Hamilton out of the bar. By some miracle, Hamilton kept his mouth shut the whole ride home. Aaron didn't know what to think. He knew John Adams was a homophobic prick. The man had likely instigated the fight; that didn't excuse Alexander's behavior. There were three wrong decisions the young genius made that night and Aaron was going to make sure Alex understood well that they were never to be made again.

    He pulled into the driveway and shut off the engine. Both men sat in silence; Burr could smell the alcohol in Hamilton’s breath.

    After a few moments of tense quiet, Alexander cleared his throat and asked, “How upset are you?”

    Aaron felt two strong emotions at once. The first was endearment; Alex’s question was so adorably childlike that it nearly melted away the fiery anger burning in his chest. The second was, of course, anger.

    “I am very upset with you, Alexander,” Aaron answered him. “It's because of how upset I am and the fact that you're drunk that we are going to continue this discussion tomorrow morning. When we get out of this car, I want you to go shower and brush your teeth and go straight to bed. No work, no checking social media, nothing other than what I've instructed. Understood?”

    Alex nodded vigorously and exited the car. Aaron took a deep breath and followed after him.

    Everything went well until Burr went to check and make sure Alex had made it to bed alright. He found the younger man hunched over his smartphone, typing away vigorously and not even realizing he'd been caught in direct disobedience until the phone was plucked from his hands.

    “Wait, Aaron -!” Alex found himself quickly pulled up from the side of bed and under Aaron’s arm, on the receiving end of 10 searing swats on his backside. Alex gasped hard and tried to block the assaulting hand but Burr was having none of it.

    “When I give you _instructions_ , they are to be _obeyed_ and never _ignored._ Do I _make_ myself _clear?”_ Aaron delivered a hard swat with every accentuated word, drawing gasps and tiny yelps from the man under his hand.

    “Yes! Aaron I am **sorry!** ” Alexander yelled, desperate to make him stop.

    Aaron delivered two more swats. “If you think this is difficult, wait until you see what I have planned for you in the morning.” He lifted Alex back into a standing position and tried to keep his stern demeanor strong, but faltered a bit at seeing the man's glassy eyes.

    “I'm sorry,” Alex repeated, looking earnest. Aaron sighed and wiped away a stray tear.

     “You're forgiven. Tonight, I'm taking your phone and your laptop. I'm going to come wake you at 9 for breakfast. Ok?”

    Alexander nodded and sniffled a little bit. He looked almost hilariously forlorn as he settled into his bed. Burr let his softer side take over and sat on the side of the bed to pet Alex’s long hair, gaining a positive reaction from the man. His eyes fluttered closed - Burr wouldn't exactly call it a purr, but whatever noise it was, it was certain a happy one. Aaron tucked away ‘Alex loves to have his hair stroked’ into his memory for future situations when Alex needed comforting. When deep, even breaths could be heard, Aaron allowed himself to relax and left to go to his own bed. There was far too much to do tomorrow and he was not about to let himself miss out on any more sleep than he already had.

* * *

 

    The next morning, Alex woke up feeling oddly refreshed. _Thank God I stopped drinking after I called Aaron._ More memories of the night before hit him in full force and he groaned - Aaron Burr had _swatted_ him like a _child._

    An unexpected rush of irateness hit Alexander as he thought about what happened. _I am a grown man. I am more than allowed to go out for a drink with my friends and I am_ **_especially_ ** _allowed to use my own phone whenever I damn well please._

    “Nose against the wall, Alexander.”

    The voice startled Alex and he whipped around to face a disgruntled Aaron Burr. Hamilton was about to argue when Aaron spoke first, “I know what's going through that brilliant mind of yours. You're feeling entitled. Let me remind you what you are _not_ entitled to do while under my instruction.” Burr paused to direct a fuming Alexander into a corner, humiliating him all the more. He kept his hand resting on the scruff of Alex's neck. “You are not entitled to drunken stupors that end with violent, destructive fights and me having to save your ass at 1 in the morning. You are also not entitled to going against a direct order, one that you had _agreed_ to before we even left the car. Is your head clearing, Alexander?”

    Guilt quickly replaced his false sense of justice as he listened to Aaron speak. Aaron felt Alex tense under his touch and knew his words were affecting him.

    “I wanted to wait to do this until after breakfast but you seem eager and I don't want to disappoint you. Turn around and rest your back against the wall, and mimic a sitting position.”

    A small groan escaped Alex as he realized what Burr had in mind. He complied anyway, really not wanting to upset the man more than he already had. Burr continued, “You're going to keep that position for ten minutes. If you start to slide,” he paused and took a small paddle out from his back pocket, “I will swat you back into place. Am I clear?”

    Alex nodded furiously, already feeling the effects on his muscles.

   “When we're in a scene, you will respond with ‘Yes, sir.’”

    “Sorry sir, yes sir,” Alex amended quickly.

    Aaron sat on the floor next to Alex, watching carefully. He knew this was difficult, and a big part of him wanted to go easy on him since this was their first scene, but last night had been too much. Two minutes in, Alex grunted and began to slide down. Aaron delivered a sharp swat with the paddle, causing an immediate correction of position.

    “Aaron, I can't do this -”

    “I will be the judge of that,” Burr stopped him. “You're doing fine. Focus on the task at hand.”

    The next three minutes were a great struggle for Alex. He continually shifted weight from leg to leg, tried everything he could to keep in position - the swat had _stung,_ far worse than the hand swats from last night.

    Another sharp swat brought Alex out of his thoughts and he yelped. At 6 minutes, Aaron told him to drop position.

    “Alright, I understand you've reached your limit in that position. You can make up the last four minutes with four swats. Come here,” he beckoned, lifting Alex from the ground a little easier than Aaron would have liked. _He needs to eat more._

    He sat his submissive on the bed and sat next to him, quickly drawing him over his lap. Alex gasped but didn't fight him, too relieved to be out from that awful position. The relief was short lived, as four searing swats landed on his upturned backside, barely protected by his thin pajama pants. Tears leaked out of his eyes, followed by soft crying; Alex felt exhausted and intensely remorseful. Aaron rubbed calming circles into his back, and let his charge cry out the last shreds of guilt before speaking. “Let’s talk for a minute. I can count three wrong decisions you made last night. Name them off to me.”  

    Alex took a few deep breaths before answering quietly, “I didn’t tell you I was going out and I shouldn’t have been out so late since you want me to start sleeping better. I got into a really bad fight and really messed up Laf’s bar.” He squirmed uncomfortably as he named the last offense. “I disobeyed you and was writing an email that could’ve waiting until morning. I’m really sorry, Aaron.”

    Burr smiled and nodded in approval. Alex rested his face in his arms and he tiredly watched Aaron as he talked: “I'm incredibly proud of you. You took that remarkably well.”

    Tear-stained cheeks lit up at that and Alex hid his face in his arms. Aaron laughed and continued rubbing his charge’s back. “I know you're tired. Do you want to rest for 30 minutes or come eat breakfast now?”

    Alex squirmed at the mention of food.

    Sympathizing, Aaron tacked on, “I know it's hard, buddy, but believe me when I tell you that you _need_ to eat more regular meals. It won't harm your figure - you're beautiful no matter your size, and a few good meals won't prove me wrong.” At Alex's silence, he again added, “I'm pretty sure with breakfast comes milkshakes later in the day.”

    Two conflicting thoughts slammed into Alex’s head at the mention of milkshakes: insane calorie count and out of this world deliciousness. Unable to deny the dull ache in his empty stomach, Alex peeked out from behind his arms. “That sounds like a bribe.”

    Aaron shrugged. “Take is as you will. The offer is still up. Now - rest or breakfast?”

    Sighing, Alex answered, “Rest...can you possibly make me a waffle afterwards?”

    Aaron faked offense. “I didn't move into your home to be a servant boy.” Dropping the mask almost immediately, Aaron laughed at Alex’s wide eyes and patted his back one last time before standing. “But, for you, I guess it's doable.” The men exchanged grins before Aaron left Alex to his nap.

    Alex had intended to take the 30 minutes to think over the scene; he hadn't intended to fall asleep mere seconds after Aaron left the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crikey, what a chapter. I really like it. Share your thoughts!


	5. Eat Your Yogurt, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY THIS HAS TAKEN SO LONG. I was camping, graduating high school, and starting a part time job all around the same time. This is a very short chapter - I will do my best to get a real, full-length chapter out within a week. I love you guys, I hope this helps relieve any stress you've had waiting for an update!

     

* * *

 

     Aaron Burr rummaged around the fridge for his Greek yogurt, and was becoming increasingly confused as the search led to a dead end. After minutes of searching, he finally found in hidden behind a few boxes of ancient cereal. Suspicion growing, he popped off the lid and was surprised to see half of the tub missing.

     _That little brat..._ He thought to himself, shaking his head. He was, however, thrilled that Hamilton had found something he liked enough to eat on his own. Setting the tub on the counter, Aaron grabbed a banana, honey, and some chopped pecans and proceeded to fix himself and his younger charge breakfast. He grabbed some spoons and carried two bowls of the yogurt concoction to Alexander Hamilton’s room, where the man was sleeping away more soundly than Burr had ever seen him.

    Last night had been quite an experience. Aaron had never worked with someone who didn’t at least had a little bit of experience with the lifestyle, but Alexander had handled it exceptionally well. He knew the punishment had been exhausting; he suspected it was the reason for Hamilton’s deep slumber. Today would be an easy day for both of them - Aaron didn’t work on the weekends and he remembered Alex talking about taking Saturday off to rest his brain, so Burr decided to devote the day to his charge’s aftercare.

    Gently setting the bowls down on the nightstand, Aaron carefully lowered himself onto the side of Hamilton’s bed. The man was a mess of hair and blankets and pillows all strewn across the bed like he’d tossed them around in his sleep. He carefully pushed as much hair as he could out of the younger man’s face and rubbed his back. Slowly, Alexander became more and more aware, almost purring in happiness at the attention he was receiving.

    “G’morning, A’rn,” a very sleepy Alex greeted, eyes still closed. Aaron stifled a laugh and replied with a good morning of his own.

    “I made you breakfast,” Burr added, “and now that I know what you secretly like, I’ll be getting you your own portion so you don’t steal mine.”

    A slow grin appeared as Hamilton made the connection. He opened one eye and said, “You found the greek yogurt.”

    “Oh yes,” the older man chuckled. “Little thief.” He prompted Alex to sit up and handed him a bowl of bananas and yogurt. Alex looked a little skeptical of the other ingredients mixed in with the yogurt, but tried a small bite and was immediately hooked. The two men lazily ate their breakfasts, not saying anything and not necessarily feeling like they needed to. Aaron knew they'd need to discuss the previous night’s punishment before long; he needed to gage where the younger man was at in regards to their new dynamic.

    Alex ate most of the yogurt before looking at it disdainfully. Aaron took pity and said, “I think you've eaten enough, and I know you just woke up. We can put that in the fridge for later.”

    Hamilton smiled in thanks and handed his... _Dom?..._ his unfinished bowl. Aaron stifled a yawn and went to take the bowls downstairs, and stopped at the door when he heard Alex give off a small, unsure, “Um…”

    “What's wrong?”

    The younger man looked determined but hesitant at the same time, and Aaron wasn't exactly sure how he was pulling it off.

    “I do not want to get out of bed yet,” Alex began, choosing his words carefully. “I also don't want to be alone and also you look kind of tired still, so...yep.”

    Aaron didn't catch on at first, both men just staring at each other, one looking confused and the other embarrassed. It took his rusty Dom instincts longer than he liked to admit to realize that Alex was asking for aftercare, particularly in the form of a nap together.

    Allowing an easy smile to form, Aaron nodded at him and left to put the bowls away. He returned immediately, having not yet changed out of his pajamas, and climbed into Alexander's bed without a word. They laid side by side for only a moment before Aaron opened his arms and his charge quickly latched onto the older man’s torso. Alex let out a long sigh and seemed to fall asleep immediately; Aaron nearly did the same, only taking a moment to marvel at Hamilton’s resilience before drifting off himself.


	6. Don't Hide Your Past From Me, Alexander.

    One of the  _ many _ debates that Alexander couldn't seem to get behind were the regular eating and sleeping schedules. For two weeks, Aaron had made his way up to Alex’s study at 11:30 to make sure he's finishing up his work, and at midnight he returns to say a final goodnight. It's infuriating for many reasons: first and foremost, it is childish as  _ fuck  _ and completely degrading. Second, Alex can’t get up after he has left, because Aaron cleverly decided to chose the room directly below Hamilton’s bed, and is able to hear every creak the floor makes upstairs. Once, Alex tried running to the laptop and back to his bed before Aaron made it downstairs, but Alex had neglected to unplug the damn thing before racing back to the sanctity of his bed. 

 

    Alex swore he still had bruising on his knuckles from the charging cord. 

 

    They had fought about the situation the night before, and Alex continued to feel angry at Aaron as he sat in his office at work. 

 

_     “You don't have a say in the matter, Alexander,” the older man had thundered, pushed too far by his stubborn charge. Hamilton felt his chest tighten but he ignored it, feeling too unjustified to back down now.  _

_     “And why not, Burr? Did you or did you not say that I had control over what you can and can't do to me? I do  _ not  _ want you to have control over my sleep schedule.” _

_     “You're right, Alex, I did say that. I  _ also  _ said that decisions regarding your health and well-being are mine to make, completely non- negotiable, and you agreed to that. You need to trust me. This is not something you get to have control of quite yet.”  _

 

    Trust. Was trust something he had ever really given the man? Alex found himself thinking about that question for quite a while before he realized a presence standing very near him. George Washington stood, looking very thoughtful, leaning casually against the edge of Hamilton’s desk. Before the younger man could begin to apologize, Washington held up a hand.

    “Don’t worry about it, son. I can tell something’s on your mind. Is it anything I can help you with? Am I working you too hard?” 

    Alex let out a breathy laugh and assured him he was fine. “I’m just thinking about a friend of mine. New roommate, actually.” 

    “Really? Finally got too lonely in that house of yours, I take it.” 

     Alex shrugged and offered him a small smile. “In a way, I suppose. We both just thought it was a good idea.” Hamilton winced inwardly at his stupid choice in wording; Washington picked up on it immediately, as Alex knew he would. 

     “Thought? So you’re having troubles living together. Are you just not sure how to bring up your concerns?” 

     Rubbing at his eyes, Alex tried to come up with a good response. “More like...I feel like I might not be acting as the best of roommates to him.” 

     George, not seeming bothered by how vague Hamilton’s answer was, just smiled at his secretary. “Having a roommate can be a struggle at first. I had a lot of roommates before I married Martha; to be honest there’s not a lot of differences.” He paused for a moment and made sure he had Alex’s attention, holding eye contact, and added, “Simply put, you just need to talk to him.” 

     Alex snorted and looked away, knowing the older man was right. It didn’t seem that simple, but boiled down, that’s really all it came to - he needed to have a honest conversation with Burr about why he was having trouble completely trusting him.  He felt George clap his shoulder, and suddenly Alex was alone with his thoughts again. 

     He found himself thinking about darker situations that he’d locked away a long time ago. He knew all of his trust issues and mental issues all started with a single relationship gone sour. Simply thinking about the man made Alex want to disappear; he still saw glimpses of him walking around the streets of New York, and he never knew if it was really him or just the memory of the man haunting him. Alex could suddenly feel his breath on his neck, a tightness wrapping around his throat-

    Alex lept out of his chair, grabbed his wallet, and left to find his best friend. 

 

* * *

 

    Lafayette looked up from his phone to see which sorry sap was wandering into a bar at 12:30 in the afternoon. Seeing Alexander, Laf threw his phone and lept over the counter to greet his friend with a tight hug. “ _ Bonjour, mon petit lion! _ ” the Frenchman gushed, kissing both of the man’s cheeks. His heart plummeted at Hamilton’s lack of response, and immediately he asked him what was wrong. 

    “I’m just not having a great day, Laf,” Alex answered honestly. He looked around the bar, and noticing the lack of patrons, asked, “Can we talk?” 

    Lafayette almost rolled his eyes and reminded him, “I will never not have time for you. Grab a chair.”

    Both men sat down and immediately dived into discussion. Hamilton had never had an issue opening up to Lafayette. 

    “Alright, love, tell me what’s going on,” the Frenchman said, dropping some of his normal dramatic quirks. “You’ve got me a little worried.” 

    Alex took a calming breath; Lafayette knew every crush he’d had, every relationship detail he had to spill - Laf knew it  _ all,  _ and even with those facts in mind, the young genius still found it difficult to let the words out of his mouth. He watched his friend, sitting knee-to-knee with him, and searched his eyes for any kind of sign that would indicate a chance that Lafayette would turn him away after this. Finding none, Alex pushed himself to speak. “You remember the man who came to pick me up from the bar a little while back, yeah?”  

    Lafayette let off a snort, but nodded. “I remember the mess afterward a little better, _ loufoque.  _ But yes, I remember him; you crushed on him in college. We’ve talked about this already. _ ” _

    Alexander blushed and gave Laf a small smile, deciding not to comment further. Instead, he continued with his story. “We’ve become roommates recently.  _ Not  _ for any romantic reasons, Laf, get that look off of your face. He moved in with me because I needed some help.” 

    Lafayette let all traces of humor drain from his face. “Alex, have you been using?” 

    “No!” Alex almost shouted, making the Frenchman jump a little bit. He kept on, “No, Laf, I promise. I’m completely clean, I will be for the rest of my life. I never want to go through that ever again.” 

    Lafayette nodded but kept his serious countenance. “What’s going on then?” 

    Alex kept himself from shrugging and looking away. “I just can’t always keep myself very well taken care of.” 

    His friend laughed, not harshly - simply in understanding. “You’re eating and sleeping habits from college? John would kill you if he knew you  _ still  _ couldn’t take care of yourself.” 

    Hamilton knew, very well, that Lafayette wasn’t trying to hurt him, but it stung regardless. Alex swallowed hard and tried to keep a smile on his face but it was crumbling fast. Realizing his mistake, Laf tried to make things better, but had no time as Alexander was quickly dissolving into tears. “ _ Non, mon cherie! S'il vous plaît, ne pas pleurer!”  _

    “It’s never going to end!” Hamilton sobbed into his hands, refusing to look up at Lafayette. “No wonder John left me, he  _ knew  _ I’d never change, I am  _ disgusting -”  _

    Strong, slender arms surrounded him and cut off his verbal assault on himself. Alexander sobbed,  _ hard _ , for what felt like hours. The hold Lafayette had on him never loosened up, nor did he ever utter a word as Hamilton cried out every bit of darkness that had been torturing him for who knows how long. Laf knew that his younger friend simply needed to feel his presence, and it was enough. Hamilton took in a shaky breath and grabbed hold of his friends jacket, needing to feel something real to steady himself. He felt like a child, but he didn’t care in that moment. A hand began to pet his loose hair, further calming the frantic man. 

    Wiping his tears away with the sleeves of his coat, Alexander finally regained composure. Lafayette, with the most gentle smile gracing his lips, said quietly, “Burr is trying to teach you how to take care of yourself, but you can’t bring yourself to let him.” 

    Alexander nodded his head with a passion. “I want to trust him, but with...with  _ him  _ always lingering in my head, I can’t, Laf, I’m so broken.” 

    “Have you talked to Aaron about him?”

    Alex swallowed hard. “Aaron works for him. I haven’t told him yet.” 

    Lafayette cursed and slumped down into his chair. He sat averted his eyes, taking time to think over his friend’s words for a moment before looking back up at Alexander, eyes warm. “I still believe you should talk to him. How is he helping you?” He waited for the blush in Alexander’s cheeks to appear and confirm his suspicions. There were too many instances Laf had witnessed to give him any doubt that Alex was Burr’s sub: the tone Burr had taken with Alex the night of the bar fight, specifically, had already led him to believe there was something deeper going on with the two men. Alex’s admission that Burr was teaching the younger man to take care of himself cemented his D/s theory. He grinned, a very dorky grin, and said, “There’s nothing to be embarrassed of. Lots of people practice Dominance and submission,  _ mon petit lion.” _

    Alexander choked on his own spit as he sucked in a ton of air, genuinely shocked that the Frenchman had caught on so quickly. 

    Lafayette patted Alex’s knee and forced the younger man to look him in the eye. “I’ve been in a D/s relationship before. If Aaron is genuine, and I am guessing that he is, than he will figure out a way to work through this. A good Dom’s nature won’t leave someone who’s so desperately in need, and you need his help. Don’t give me that look, Alexander.”

    Crossing his arms petulantly, Hamilton sat back in his chair to glare at his best friend. Lafayette shook his head and forced Alex to stand up, ushering him out of the door and into the lobby, where still, not a single patron could be seen. 

    “I’m only a phone call away,  _ belle _ . Call me if you need anything.” He raised a suggestive eyebrow and said again, with more emphasis, “ _ Anything. _ ”

     Hamilton slapped his chest before giving the man a tight hug. They said their goodbyes, and suddenly, Alex was left alone again with his thoughts.  _ Shit. _

 

* * *

 

     Aaron found himself thinking a lot about Alexander that afternoon. They were making progress, but he knew Alex still had a lot of reservations. He felt good about where they were; his increased appetite was continuously making him proud, though his sleeping schedule left a lot to be desired. He didn’t want to force the young man to sleep every night; the goal was for Alex to develop the habit on his own.  _ It’s only been a month, Aaron. Alex is a very stubborn man. He’ll come around.  _

     He did not, by any means, expect the text he received an hour before his lunch break. 

_ To A. Burr, From A. Ham, Thursday, 12:04: _ _ Hey Aaron. Lunch today? Important.  _

_ To A. Ham, From A. Burr, Thursday, 12:04: _ _ Of course. When and where. Are you safe? _

_ To A. Burr, From A. Ham, Thursday, 12:05: _ _ Yes. But it’s about our relationship. I haven’t been honest with you. Reynold’s Coffeehouse, around 1? _

_ To A. Ham, From A. Burr, Thursday, 12:05: _ _ I see. Reynold’s is fine. Be there at 1 sharp.  _

 

    Aaron let a frustrated sigh pass through his lips.  _ Way to jinx yourself.  _

    There was a knock on his office door and he reflexively called out ‘come in’ before he realized he probably wasn’t in the best headspace to be dealing with too many people. Luckily, Burr really wouldn’t have had a choice in the matter, as it was his boss who came sauntering it with a sleazy smile on his face. 

     Not very fond of the man, Aaron did his best to seem happy to see him. “What can I do for you, Mr. Jefferson?” 

    “Call me Thomas,” the man corrected, and Burr immediately filed away the response under ‘things I will ignore completely.’ “I need lunch. I know you don’t typically leave the office for lunch but I’m tied up here and I am famished. I’ll pay - please?” 

     Burr nodded and responded, “I’m going to the Reynold’s Coffeehouse. I can pick you up a sandwich, if you’d like.” 

     “Yes!” Thomas fished out a $20 and tossed at his employee. “Something with ham. No tomato. Cheese, preferably.” 

    Aaron fought back a snarky ‘ _ So...you want a ham and cheese sandwich.’  _

    Thomas turned to leave, but stopped at the door and tossed back, “Do you have a date?” 

    Not wanting to lie, but not necessarily wanting to divulge personal details, Aaron answered, “In a way, yes.”

    “What’s the name?”

    “Alex.” 

    Something dark flashed in the Southern man’s eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it came. He cleared his throat, muttered something like “That’s a good name,” and took his leave of the office. 

    Burr shook his head before turning back to his computer.

 

* * *

 

    Hamilton twisted a loose piece of thread dangling from the sleeve of his hoodie around his finger and tugged at it sharply. When it didn’t break and instead just pulled out more thread, he cringed.  _ One more thing to stress over. My hoodie is falling apart and Aaron is about to drop me out of his life completely. Lovely.  _ Every time the door opened and set off the little bell, Alex flinched. His stomach was already turning; he wasn’t ready for this. He’d done his reading - total honesty and trust were so crucial in a relationship like his and Burr’s. He knew well that he should’ve informed Aaron of his issues. He looked down at his hands - shaking. For once, it’s not his never ending energy that’s causing the shakiness. 

    A figure slipped into the other side of his booth, causing Alex to jump back in surprise. Aaron looked at him in complete neutrality, not giving a thing away. 

    “Sorry,” Alex apologized quickly, “I don’t know why I didn’t hear you come in.” 

    “Nerves,” the older man responded, nearly monotone. Alex could’ve sworn he heard a note of concern in his voice. Aaron continued, “Have you ordered?” 

    Alex nodded and told him he’d ordered a cinnamon roll. Aaron rolled his eyes, and said, “That doesn’t quite qualify as a lunch. That’s nothing but sugar.”

    “But it  _ is  _ food, and you’ve never specified what I need to be eating.” Alex bit his cheek, seeing clearly now that hole he’d just dug himself into.  _ And we haven’t even gotten to the good part.  _

     Aaron didn’t glance up from his menu as he said, “We’ll be having a good talk tonight about specifications, in that case.” 

     Alex didn’t respond to that, instead opting to fiddle more with the loose threads on his hoodie while Aaron called over a waitress to place his order. He couldn’t find that right words to say to his friend, his... _ Dom _ ...and it was really bothering him. He was supposed to always be the one who was good with words. He practically mastered the written word, spun the English language in ways that could persuade a fish to give living on a land a try. Yet, here he was, completely at a loss of what to say. 

    The waitress placed both orders in front of the men, Aaron having ordered a pre-made marionberry scone; not even a minute later, word-vomit tumbled out of Alex’s mouth with no chance of being stopped.

 

    “I was in an abusive relationship with your boss for three years.”

 

* * *

 

    Aaron nearly dropped his fork. He stared at the younger man, slack-jawed, as he processed the information bomb Alexander had just released. He suddenly lost interest in the now half-eaten scone. He felt very strong, distinct emotions one after the other: heartbreak. He couldn’t imagine anyone mistreating Alex; as much of a pain as he could be, the Nevisian prodigy was one of the brightest, kindest people he’d ever met. The second emotion was anger, because as sad as the admission was, keeping this from him was completely unacceptable. This changed the game completely. The third and final emotion was the one that stuck with him for the rest of their meeting: disappointment. 

    Alex picked up on it immediately. 

     “I am so sorry, Burr, I didn’t want to bring it up because it’s in my past,” the younger man began to explain, “and I really like to keep my past behind me whenever possible. I thought I could have this relationship without having you find out, but it’s keeping me from...trusting. Trusting you, I mean, I don’t trust you and I want to.” Aaron didn’t respond; he just watched while Alex kept defending his case. “He was very charming, and he liked to play around in the bedroom in a similar fashion to what you and I do, just, you know...different, obviously. It changed after a couple months, he’d start saying really awful things whenever I frustrated him. My mouth really started pissing him off. The physical abuse started not long after the verbal abuse did.” 

     Aaron’s heart twisted painfully. He grabbed Alex’s hand as the sub continued telling his story in a very hushed tone. He didn’t pay attention to the gathering tears in this eyes. 

     “It got very, very bad. He completely changed me. He’d leave me tied up for days. He wouldn’t let me eat, because the fat on my body disgusted him; I need to be  _ prettier  _ for him,” he spat the emphasized word with such venom that Aaron almost didn’t recognize the voice as Hamilton’s. He gave the hand a gentle squeeze, but Alex didn’t pay attention, suddenly very wrapped up in his past. “I didn’t dispute him one time. I thought he was right, I thought I  _ deserved  _ it, I couldn’t think on my own anymore -” 

   “Alex, please -” 

   “He ruined  _ everything,  _ Aaron,  _ I’m ruined  _ -” 

    Suddenly Aaron was out of his seat, pulling Alex along with him, as he quickly tossed Jefferson’s $20 on the table. He’d take care of  _ him _ later.

     He wasted no time leading Alex to his car, the younger man having gone completely silent, leaving Aaron to listen to his ragged breathing as he got his emotions back under control. Alex rested his forehead against the dashboard, and Aaron realized his whole body was shaking. He made a quick decision and pulled Alex onto lap, the transition requiring almost no effort as Alex was so thin, and held the smaller man against his chest. He slipped his fingers through Alex’s hair and rubbed circles into his back, slowly calming him. Aaron quietly admitted to himself that the action was giving he himself a bit of comfort - the thought of Jefferson treating Alex so horribly had fanned sparks of protectiveness into a raging fire. 

    The shaking stopped, replaced by a deafening silence as Alex debated how he was going to react to the position he was in. He felt a crushing weight disappear as the younger man wrapped his arms around Aaron’s torso, and buried his face into his shoulder. 

    “We’re going to have a talk about this tonight,” Aaron said, still stroking the soft head of hair. Alex only nodded. He discharged himself from Burr’s lap and got back into his own seat. Without a word, Aaron started the car and left the coffeehouse parking lot, remembering that Alexander had eaten little to none of his cinnamon roll. He decided to let it slide, knowing that the smaller man was in no mood to be eating food, if his earlier admissions were anything to go by. 

    Aaron’s chest became continually tighter as he thought about how to proceed. There had to be consequences. His trust in Alexander, though it was not a mutual trust, had taken a huge blow. Aaron thought back to the last time they’d done a scene, coincidentally also being their first scene, and cringed as he realized that it was a very mild scene compared to what he was considering for tonight. 

    His mind also reminded him that he was currently working for his sub’s abuser. That wouldn’t do. Sighing quietly, he resigned himself to a long day of endless decision making.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to thelittlelion for beta reading for me! If you guys love this, you'll go crazy for her works. I strongly suggest taking a look at her masterpieces :)


	7. You're Stronger Than You Realize, Alexander.

Aaron busied himself for the rest of the day with menial tasks that kept him from running into Jefferson. He knew the second he laid eyes on the man, he’d lose it. Burr did not plan on staying on at this company for much longer. As much as he appreciated the hefty paycheck that came along with the job, he could never justify working for someone who’d damaged Alex so brutally. His blood boiled at the notion. He thought back to other companies he’d applied for. There had been plenty which had requested to interview him before he’d accepted the job at Jefferson Accounting; he hoped at least of them still had a need for an accountant.

It wasn’t until the clock struck 5:30 that Aaron finally got the OK to head home. He gathered his suit jacket and stuffed his laptop into his messenger bag, clearing off all signs of living from his desk and heading quickly toward the elevator.

“Mr. Burr!” a voice boomed from behind him. Pushing down a grimace and unspeakable anger, Aaron mustered his self-control into place and turned to face his boss with a smile on his face.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Jefferson?” he answered.

“I just wanted to thank you for the sandwich,” Thomas said, his hair free from it’s usual tight ponytail he kept at the nape of his neck. “I like ham, a lot. Do you?”

“I...guess?” Burr answer cautiously, feeling genuinely confused. Searing anger flooded his veins at just the sound of the man’s voice. The odd comment only further irritated him. Tone clipped, he added, “I’m more of a chicken person, honestly, but I’m starting to like ham a little better nowadays.” Aaron figured this was one of the weirdest topics of smalltalk he’d ever discussed.

Thomas shrugged and smiled sweetly at him. “Have a good night, Burr. Go ahead and take tomorrow off.” He turned and headed back to his own office, leaving Aaron confused but glad to be done with the man. As he pressed the 1st floor button on the elevator panel, Jefferson turned and looked him dead in the eye and he tossed out a casual, “Say hello to Alex for me.”

Aaron Burr felt his blood run cold as the odd topic of conversation finally made sense.

 

* * *

 

Frames and chandeliers shook as Aaron closed the front door behind him a little too hard. He knew Alexander would not be home for another hour (longer if Aaron didn’t remind him that the hours he chose to work were not mandatory) and he was grateful for it. He was angry - _furious -_ at the audacity Jefferson showed by mentioning Hamilton’s name. His nickname, no less, as if he had some right to sound familiar with Burr’s sub. He tried not to damage his laptop as he nearly slammed the thing on the dinner table and began typing up his letter of resignation. When the letter was sent directly to Jefferson’s personal email, Aaron began calling up the other accounting firms in the area. He didn’t care if not a single one of them wasn’t hiring - he’d rather be unemployed than working for Thomas Jefferson. He’d make due; he’d pick up small jobs until a bigger one came up.

He sent Alex a quick text asking him to be home by 7. Soon after, he sent another and specified he wanted the younger man home at 7PM. He got a reply soon after that made him laugh:

 

_To A. Burr from A. Ham, Thursday, 5:47: Nice catch, Burr. I don’t know whether to laugh or cringe at how well you know me nowadays. What would our teen-selves think?_

_To A. Ham from A. Burr, Thursday, 5:48: They’d probably be mildly horrified if our history of fervent disagreements are anything to go by._

_To A. Ham from A. Burr, Thursday, 5:50: We’ll be having a discussion before we start a scene tonight. I want you to be prepared._

 

Aaron didn’t expect a reply, but he was pleasantly surprised that he received one anyway, and he was especially pleased with its contents: _Yes, sir._

_Good boy. He’s learning,_ Aaron thought. Except, he wasn’t. He wouldn’t learn anything or make any real progress until this trust issue was taken care of. That fact reminded him that he had very little time to prepare for the night’s activities.

 

* * *

 

Alexander gripped the steering wheel of car so tightly that he wondered briefly if his fingers would be stuck that way forever. His stomach was turning as he considered the mess he’d gotten himself into; a necessary mess, but it was killing him nonetheless. He breathed slowly, trying to calm his nerves, but he couldn’t. He had 24 minutes to get to the house before Aaron was bound to come and get him from work himself. Fighting tears that stung his eyes, he slammed his fist into the wheel, the horn ringing loudly around the nearly empty parking garage. He dropped his head into his hands and felt his chest tighten, another inevitable wave of tears about to hit him for the third time that day. Without thinking about it, he dialed in a number by memory and pressed the phone to his ear, the coolness of the screen a relief against his feverish skin. He had no idea who he was calling until the man picked up:

_“Alexander? Are you alright?”_

Burr. Of course he called Burr.

“Yeah, Aaron, I’m fine,” he croaked, cringing at the sound of his own voice. It was scratchy and thick, giving him away immediately.

_“Alex, talk to me. We’ve got to build up this trust somehow. Communicating is the first step. Tell me what’s wrong, kitten.”_

He couldn’t stop the snort at the petname. “Kitten? Where’d you get that? That’s new.”

_“You purr every time I pet your hair. It fits. Now don’t distract me. Tell me what’s wrong.”_

Alex couldn’t argue with his logic, and he did find that he didn’t mind the nickname, so long as he didn’t use it in front of anyone else. He stayed quiet for a moment, building up his courage. He didn’t really know why he’d called Aaron. He just needed to talk to someone and he found Aaron to be a very sturdy rock in his life. He supposed that was his job as his Dom, but he cherished his immovability anyway.

“I’m nervous about coming home,” Alex finally admitted. “We haven’t built up to a scene like this before. It’s usually been right after I did something wrong. This time I’ve had to wait and wait and I’ve been thinking about it all day and I’m terrified.” There was silence on the other end of the line for a beat before Aaron leapt back into the conversation.

_“Do you want to have our conversation now, while I have your attention? That way there’s no uneasy ‘not knowing what’s going to happen’ on your part. No penalty for being late, since I’m technically keeping you.”_

Alex supposed it was better than nothing. “Sure, that sounds fair.”

_“Alright, then. What we’re dealing with tonight is an issue of dishonesty. Now, you didn’t lie to me directly, but you did omit certain truths about your experiences with Dominance and submission, truths that were crucial to how we proceeded. Can you agree with that?”_

Though Burr couldn’t see him, Alex nodded and answered, “Yes, sir.”

Aaron continued, _“Good boy.”_ Hamilton’s chest loosened at the praise. _“Now, I need you to understand something very, very important. I do not want you to think that I am punishing you for confiding in me. That is something I will never do. I always want you to confide in me. My job as your Dominant is to know everything there is to know about you, so that I can see the best way to help you become exactly who you want to be. However, there are consequences to keeping me from doing my job. You kept secrets, and therefore you couldn’t open up to me and trust me. Are you still following?”_

“Yes.”

“ _Do you understand and agree?”_

“Yes, sir. That’s why I brought it up today. Laf said I should, and I agreed with him. I was feeling guilty and I want to trust you.” Alex swore he could hear the other man smile.

_“That makes me happy. I’m glad you want to trust me.”_ Alex heard Aaron take a deep breath and knew what was coming. _“Now, for the less comfortable portion of this conversation, we need to discuss your punishment. The punishment itself is not up for negotiation, but you can chose to say no. However, I want you to understand that if you do say no, the nature of our relationship_ will _change and I will no longer be able to be your Dom. This scene is our first big step toward gaining mutual trust and it must happen for our arrangement to continue. Understand?”_

The answer was easy for Alexander, a fact that surprised him. “Yeah, I understand, but I’m gonna agree to it no matter what. I want this to work.”

_“You’re impressing me more and more every time you open your mouth tonight.”_ This time, a warmth blossomed throughout his body as he soaked in the praise.

_Since when have I been so eager for praise?_ Alex thought to himself. He stopped worrying about it as Aaron continued:

_“We’re going to experiment with the cane tonight. I will not strike you above your waist. You will be blindfolded and you’re going to hold a position that will not be easy for you. I’m not going to restrain you, as now I’m aware of how touchy that is going to be for you, but if I find that you cannot hold a position then I will be holding you down myself until our scene is finished. Is that acceptable, Alexander?”_

Was it? Initially the idea was completely insane, the thought of agreeing to it even more so; but then he thought about John. He thought about John, Eliza, Lafayette, Herc, all the people he’d hurt or stressed out to the point of storming out of his life because he couldn’t function like an adult. He didn’t want to add Aaron to that list - with that in mind, “Yes, sir,” slipped out of his lips without a second thought.

_“Very good. As of right now, the scene has started. I want to hear you start the engine, please.”_ With shaky hands, Alex slipped the key into the ignition and started the car. _“Thank you. Take a deep breath, Alexander. I am going to take care of you. This is one bump in the road that you are going to handle like a champion because you are fully capable. I believe in you. Drive safely, kitten.”_

The line went dead. 

  



	8. Keep Your Position, Alexander.

Alex parked his car in the driveway and shut it off before his mind could tempt him into driving right back out. The lights were on, and he could see Aaron’s faint silhouette by the living room window. He forced his legs to take him out of the car and up to the front door. He almost missed a neatly written note taped right above the deadbolt, that read,  _ “Alex - when you come in, immediately place all of your belongings next to the door, remove your shoes and kneel. Do nothing else.”  _

_ An easy enough demand, _ Alex mused, and continued to unlock the door. He felt his shakiness begin to ease as he realized the scene was finally here in front of him, no longer some impending, terrifying situation he couldn’t control. Leaving his shoes, jacket and messenger bag to the right of the doorway, he closed the door behind him and slunk to the ground. Only moments later did he hear footsteps and a hand rest gently on the back of his head. 

This is not a position he expected to find himself in on a Thursday night. 

* * *

Aaron listened carefully after the headlights momentarily created shadows through the window and alerted him to Alex’s arrival. Almost immediately, the car was shut off, a car door opened and closed, and he could hear Alex fumbling with his keys as he hurried to get inside the house. There was a pause, and Aaron knew he’d found the note. He abandoned his book and readied himself for the upcoming hour - he really hoped they wouldn’t have to drag this out any longer than that. 

Finally, the door was opened and Alex began following the instructions immediately, and Aaron was relieved. The last thing he wanted to deal with tonight was a willfully disobedient sub, and Alex was giving him exactly what he’d been hoping for: cooperation. Burr would take care of the rest. 

Knowing well that Hamilton had been stressed enough from the anticipation, he wasted no time in walking over to where the man was kneeling. He rested his hand on Alex’s head and stroked the thick, silky hair that grew there, drawing a soft sigh from him. Aaron found Alex’s weakness for having his hair played with so endearing that he found himself wanting to do it every chance he got. Alex leaned into his hand, causing Aaron to smile as he thought about the nickname he’d accidentally let slip during their phone call; he was grateful Alex had not been upset by it. ‘Kitten’ really was just too perfect. 

“Alexander, I want you to change into a loose shirt and loose pajama pants. Afterward, please go kneel at the foot of my bed. Understood?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Go.” 

Alex rose from his position and left without a word or even a glance - he was trying so hard to be obedient and Aaron was honored. He walked back into the living room and grabbed the cane he’d removed earlier from storage. The synthetic cane was a meter long, solid black, and was more effective at getting his point across than most of the other implements he possessed. When he’d first pulled it out of storage, he’d taken the time to get used to it for a good ten minutes before sitting down to read. He had not used the implement in a very long time, and he was not going to be taking any chances with Alexander - especially not tonight. 

Giving it a few swings for good measure, he headed to the stairwell. He heard a bit of rustling before the  **_thump_ ** of knees hitting the hardwood floor. 

The lack of resistance Alexander had shown throughout their short time together genuinely surprised him, especially given the new bits of information he’d learned about his past. It only proved Alex’s desire to learn, and Aaron was happy to teach him. He wasn’t naïve; he knew they would have struggles in the future. He didn’t dismiss the ‘calm before the storm’ theory, and was going to be keeping a very close eye on the younger man, something Burr knew would probably frustrate him. He was ready for the challenge. 

Aaron slowly ascended the steps and entered the bedroom. He was a little distracted at the position Hamilton was in: he held perfect posture, hands clasped behind his back, resting his body on his heels. He wore a thin white t-shirt, dark green sweatpants that hung just below the seam of the shirt, his feet bare. Though Alex was still too thin, there was no ignoring the toned figure he bore, the slender muscles in his forearms flexing slightly as he detected Aaron’s presence. 

Pushing down everything he felt in that moment, Aaron immediately latched onto his role as Alex’s much-needed Disciplinarian, and the scene began. 

* * *

Alex couldn’t resist his desire to obey Aaron if he tried. Something about the combination of disappointing him with his dishonesty and the praise he’d received from the Dom over the phone had inspired a deep-rooted need within him to submit. He changed quickly, throwing on comfortable lounging clothes and removing his socks. Tendrils of doubt started forming in the back of his mind, and he almost began to feel the familiar indignance before he forced himself down onto his knees. A resounding  **_thump_ ** echoed through the floorboards, grounding him, reminding him that he was in a place he’d been practically begging for since Aaron moved into the house.

The steardiness of the hardwood beneath his knees was a godsend, keeping his mind focused on the submissive stance he was taking. It reminded him of his and Aaron’s first scene together, only days earlier, when Burr had forced him to face the wall to focus him to the task at hand. He’d been furious at first, but the anger had been so short lived. Even now, listening to Burr’s slow ascend up the stairwell, he couldn’t latch onto any feelings of resistance. His senses sharpened, as well as his attentiveness, as he heard a tiny intake of breath from behind him. 

It was in this moment that the man dropped into a place he’d never explored, nor ever dreamed to while with Jefferson. All there was, in this moment, was Aaron Burr. 

* * *

Aaron stood directly behind the submissive, letting him soak up his presence. He took in the lack of tension in Alex’s body, the calmness he was exhibiting, and how attentive he clearly was. Burr had to take a moment to realize the man had dropped into a sort of pre-subspace before they’d even really begun. The fact made his heart swell - Alex was putting so much trust in him tonight, intentionally, wanting to see once and for all if Aaron was someone he could submit himself to. He was so vulnerable in this moment. He threaded his fingers through the inky, black locks of hair and gently tugged back, wanting to meet Alex’s eyes. He was met with very little resistance, and Alex locked eyes with him, causing a pinkness to flood the submissive’s skin.

“You’re doing excellent. Let’s keep that up, shall we?” He removed his hands from the man’s hair and stepped away from him, crossing the room to stand at the side of the bed. He pointed to the spot directly in front of him. “Stand here.” 

Alex rose slowly from the ground, loose hair swinging around to briefly cover his face. Aaron made a decision and waited for Alex to be near him before taking the man’s wrist. He ignored the quickened breathing and removed the hair tie resting there, not wanting to send Alex into a panic. He circled the submissive and began braiding his hair, his own fingers recognizing almost instantly the familiar movements and creating a tight, neat braid down his neck. He heard a hum of amusement come from the younger man, and Aaron smiled.

“Alright, you’re ready. I’m going to position you. Do not break this position until I give you explicit permission,” Burr said, his tone leaving no room to argue. “If you move, I promise you, you will not enjoy the consequences. Understood?”

Alex watched him with a kind of focus that nearly made Aaron uneasy. He wasn’t used to seeing the man so concentrated unless he was hunched over his work papers he’d brought home. Outside of that, his brain was usually throwing his thoughts in a hundred different directions at once, never stopping to look at Aaron with the intensity he did now. He imagined it was a great relief for Hamilton to be able to shut off like this. Alex finally nodded his understanding and stood a little closer to the older man. Aaron moved him a few feet from the foot of the bed, bent him over at the waist, and placed the each of Alex’s hands on the two bed posts. 

“Do you or do you not want me to tie your hands to the posts?” Aaron asked, softening his tone for the moment. 

Alex faltered, his calm demeanor slipping as he considered the pros and cons of immobility. Aaron was quick to answer for him. “We’ll forgo that tonight. It’s clear to me we are aren’t ready for that. It’s alright, Alexander. Hold this position - you remember my warning?”  
Breathing easier for only a moment, Alex was reminded of why he was really in this position. He could do nothing to stop the tremor that shook his thin frame. Immediately, there was a hand on the back of his neck, kneading gently, refocusing him. He was in good hands. Aaron was taking care of him and he was ready to be back in the man’s good graces. Alex nodded and gave a quiet, “Yes, sir.” 

* * *

The **_crack_** of the cane against his thighs registered before the pain did. As it grew into the forefront of his mind, a strangled yelp escaped his mouth. By some miracle, he did not move from his position. Alex clenched his eyes shut and tried his best not to clench his teeth, opting for open-mouthed gasping to try and cope with the pain. The second sharp, fiery bite of the cane landed slightly higher, but having expected the strike, he stayed quiet.

He rolled his shoulders the best he could and focused on his breathing. 

Another strike, this one higher than the last. 

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, a desperate and useless attempt to relieve some of the fire building on the delicate skin of his thighs. 

The next strike landed over the first one. Alex cringed as he let loose another pained noise. 

He could feel his body begin to quake at the uncomfortable angle he was bent. His leg muscles, even without the added discomfort from the cane, strained at how taut they’d been pulled. 

His mind barely registered the sudden removal of his sweatpants until the intensified sharpness of the next strike took him by surprise. 

He didn’t realize he’d been crying until he noticed the dark patterns of small droplets on the duvet beneath him. 

“Alexander, remind me why we are here.” Aaron’s dark, steely tone brought him out his focus, bringing him straight into full comprehension of how much pain he was in. He sucked in a sharp breath, tears pooling and finally spilling down his face, as he tried to corral his thoughts into words. 

“I am here,” Alex croaked, “because I didn’t tell you whole truth.” 

“About?”

“About my past, and it kept me from trusting you.” A small sob made the last word barely decipherable, but Aaron caught it. The Dom hummed in approval and made his way over to Alex’s side, running his hand over Alex’s quivering shoulder blades. 

“Good boy. You’re also here for another reason I haven’t mentioned yet. You put yourself in danger of further harm.” Alex’s head whipped up at that, almost breaking position, and he looked at Burr in total confusion. The older man continued, “What happened between you and that man have affected you in ways that are completely life-altering. If I don’t have complete knowledge of how to keep you mentally stable and safe for our scenes and lifestyle, than that adds in a risk factor that I have had no idea about. I could put you in a situation that would send you spiraling into a devastating panic attack that would be very hard to come back from.” Alex felt more guilt flood through his system as he watched the other man pause and compose himself. Breathing deeply through his nose, Aaron ended his lecture with, “This can’t happen anymore. You and I must be completely honest with each other from here on out. No secrets. I don't want you to feel unnecessarily guilty and I don't want to hurt you. Do we have an understanding?” 

Alex nodded with full sincerity. “Always, Aaron.” 

With a hint of a smile, the older man announced, “Four more and we’re all finished, kitten.” 

Alex nodded firmly despite the rush of dread he felt. He gripped the posts tightly. 

“Can you count them for me?” Aaron asked, not harshly but keeping his dominant position clear. Shakily, Alex replied, “Yessir.” 

The strikes came down fast and hard, Alex gasping out the numbers as Aaron blessedly brought the punishment to close. Dropping the cane, Aaron scooped the man up into his arms and carried them over to the side of the bed. Alex’s whole body was trembling as he released years of hidden suffering into Burr’s shirt. The tears didn't bother him - Aaron was too fond of Alex to make a fuss. He laid back, Alex still in his grasp, and the younger man latched onto him completely, resembling a koala wrapped around a tree branch. 

    As they rested against the pillows and the headboard, Alexander completely wrung out and Aaron coming out of his mindset as a Disciplinarian, the sense of closeness was a huge comfort to both of them. Somehow, Alex snugged even closer into Aaron’s side, only trembling slightly from the aftershock of emotions. He let out a whine at the pain, but sleep overtook him within second. Aaron never woke him; they'd deal with everything else in the morning. For now, Alex was requiring aftercare in the form of sleep and cuddling, and the older man couldn't find it in himself to object to the kitten’s needs. 


	9. I've Got a Plan, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Some of you may remember this chapter differently - that is because I deleted it and rewrote it because I was VERY unhappy with the direction it was going. Enjoy! I am newly inspired and you'll have another chapter by next Sunday hopefully!

_ His shoulder reluctantly popped back into place as he slammed himself up against a wall, his bound arms screaming at him to stop, but his mind reminding him of the urgent situation at hand. The edges of his vision darkened, the pain threatening to take his consciousness captive but he fought against it. Summoning energy that had abandoned him weeks ago, Alexander Hamilton threw his body through the wall of windows and fell down into the hood of the car below him, crushing bones and hope all at once. The blackness swarmed his vision, and the last thing he heard was the screaming from children riding their bikes down at the street at the wrong moment. _

 

* * *

 

_ He came back to life so sudden that it was like coming up for air after being stuck under water for hours. He was so scared - there were wires and tubes and doctors everywhere, and he couldn’t  _ move -  _ couldn’t move? He flexed his arms and they barely responded. His legs were another matter; did he still have legs? Nothing felt right. He felt tears stream down his face as he tried to talk to the doctors but all that left his mouth were strangled cries.  _

 

_ They were quick to sedate the man. _

 

* * *

 

 

Alexander was shaking hard as he woke up from his nightmare, the sheets around him drenched in sweat and cold to the touch. He was alone. Where was Aaron?

 

“Aaron?” he called out, surprised his voice didn’t croak. His body felt wrong; something was different. He threw the blankets off of him and hurried out of the room, calling out for Aaron. He needed the older man, he felt so scared, he  _ needed _ Aaron - 

 

He stopped in his tracks when he finally found Aaron, struggling against a smirking, snake of a man with a wicked smile dancing his face. Aaron’s eyes jumped to his own, wide with terror and Alex couldn’t seem to move. 

 

Thomas laughed at him. “Alex, baby,” he purred, “Still sleeping around, hm? I do not like it when people play with possessions.”  _ Thomas’s arm tightened around Aaron’s neck, causing the victimized man to wince and try harder to rip himself away but Thomas was too strong.  _

 

_ “You’d think after all of your training that you would have turned out to be a better pet,” Jefferson mused, his eyes never leaving Alexander's. “In the end, a whore is a whore. No matter how many times I try to get it through your thick, pathetic fucking head, you still think you’re free to do as you please. When I’m through with you, maybe you’ll think twice the next time you try to whore yourself out to the first person who pays attention to you.” He paused only to glance at Aaron, who was fainting fast in his grip. “Maybe I'll play with your pathetic attempt to replace me first.”  _

 

It was Alex’s scream as Thomas threw Aaron to the ground that finally pulled him out of the nightmare. 

 

* * *

 

“Hamilton! Alexander, wake up,  _ you must wake up _ !” 

 

Aaron gripped the man's shoulders to keep him from hurting himself. Finally, Alex’s eyes flew open and he grabbed Aaron, flipping him onto the bed and effectively reversing their positions. Aaron stayed dead still as he watched his friend frantically search his face, looking sick and angry and terrified all at once. He dissolved into tears and Aaron pulled him down onto his chest, happy to feel Alex wrap his arms around Aaron’s own torso. 

 

He didn’t know how long Alexander cried, but when the body-shaking sobs finally died out, all that was left of the man was a terrified shell. 

 

“Hamilton? What happened?” Aaron whispered, wiping the sweat from the man’s face without a second thought. He couldn’t help how fast his heart was racing; in all honesty, he was scared for Alex. He could feel him trembling in his arms and he hated it. 

 

“T-Thomas had you,” the smaller man answered in a voice so quiet that Burr was unsure if he was imagining it or not. “I was looking for you, because I was scared, I’d dreamed about...about…” Alexander barely moved closer to Aaron but the older man noticed it nonetheless. Alex continued, “I was dreaming about the day I finally ran away from Thomas.” 

 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Aaron asked him gently, stroking the man’s sweaty hair. He thought about coaxing Alex into the bath once he’d calmed down. 

 

Alex shook his head, still trying to get his trembling under control. “Another day,” he whispered, before closing his eyes and burying his face into the duvet, trying to distance himself from the Dom. Aaron gave Hamilton’s arm a gentle squeeze before getting up and heading to the bathroom to start running a bath. 

 

Once alone in the illustrious room, he fell against the wall, exhausted. The poor man. He suddenly felt far more sure about his decision to quit his job than he had previously; he would not have been safe there, and merely by association he would have been putting Alex in danger. It crossed his mind that he’d just quit a very well-paying job for a man he’d been out of touch with for almost ten years. Where logic told him that may have been a mistake, his heart reminded him that he really didn’t care. 

 

Aaron hoisted himself back into a standing position and began to run a bath. He rummaged around the cabinets until he found a dusty bottle of bath oil - lavender and honey - and poured a capful into the steaming pool. Tiny bubbles appeared and the room filled with sweet aromas. 

 

The Dom walked back to the bed and leaned down next to Alex, carefully nudging him until his eyes cracked open. He smiled sweetly and said, “I ran you a bath. I want you to come relax for a bit while I make us something to drink, ok?” The smaller man nodded, face smushed up against the mattress, but made no effort to move. Aaron gently peeled back the duvet and scooped Alex up into his arms. He tried to ignore the distressing fact of how easy it was to carry the man and focused more on how endearing it was as Alex settled easily against him as he walked the short distance from the bed to the connecting master bathroom. 

 

After settling him onto the extensive counter, he held back a laugh as Alex reached his arms up, clearly expecting Aaron to help him undress. Aaron decided the sub must have settled into some sort of vague level of subspace. After they’d shimmied Alex’s sweatpants off, he made the decision to have Hamilton keep his boxers on before helping the smaller man into the tub. A long, deeply relieved sigh left Alex’s lips as his body was consumed by the hot, oil-infused water. Aaron swore he saw the tension in the sub’s body disappear before his eyes. Satisfied, he left with the promise of tea and a quick return, and turned to leave the bathroom. 

 

Upon entering the kitchen, he couldn’t help but feel thick tendrils of doubt start to creep into his mind. Alex carried so much baggage. But, then again, so did he himself. Alex simply wasn’t aware of it yet. A memory of Aaron’s last submissive - the one he had swore  _ would _ be the last - played in his mind’s eye, creating a feeling of sickening nostalgia in the pit of his stomach. Mocha skin, the soft curve of feminine hips, blood-red rope pulled tight against slender wrists - 

 

The kettle began to whistle and jolted Aaron out of his flashback. He cursed softly and turned the stove top off, while similarly turning off the pipeline of emotion that threatened to burst at any moment at the thought of the long-gone submissive. 

 

Something had to be done about Thomas Jefferson. He would not allow another relationship to turn to ruin at the hands of someone who only intended to cause pain. The question was: how to trick the man into giving them the leverage they needed to keep him out of their business? Jefferson wasn’t an idiot. He was a very wealthy business owner, and he didn’t gain his fortune by making sloppy mistakes and allowing others to have the upper hand. It seemed as if Jefferson was constantly one step ahead of his competitors when Aaron had worked for him. 

 

The answer hit him hard, as if he’d smacked into a glass door. They needed evidence of Thomas Jefferson’s abuse. If they could get evidence against him, Jefferson would back down immediately. There was no way a man of such high public opinion would risk that opinion being soiled in any way. A testimony from Alexander would not be good enough. No, what they needed was an admission from Thomas Jefferson himself. Aaron knew exactly how to get that. 

 

He carried the cups of tea on a tray and carefully made his way back up the stairs. His mind was whirling but he let no hint of that anxiety show on his face when he was back in view of Alexander. He merely smiled reassuringly at the younger man, who was heavy-lidded and smiling lazily at Aaron in return. 

 

“How are you feeling?” Aaron asked him, handing him the tea and moving to position himself behind Hamilton’s head. Carefully, he began combing the silky locks of thick, dark hair with a wide-tooth comb. 

 

“Much better,” came the soft and sleepy reply. He sipped the tea slowly, very careful not to spill any into his bath water. “I know Thomas is dangerous, but I know we’ll figure something out.” 

 

Aaron smiled, mostly to himself. “How right you are.”


	10. You're Free, Alexander.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I owed this chapter to you - I cannot promise when I will be able to start and consistently update another series, so I'm putting an end to this one and promising you one-shots whenever I have the time. I love you guys, and I appreciate your support and patience!

Alex squirmed in his chair. It was hard not to - he couldn’t remember the last time he felt so nervous for a dinner date. He knew everything would be fine - not a single detail or possible outcome had been overlooked; he knew that no matter what happened, he’d come out okay. It was just dinner. It was a dinner that would end in something wonderful, even if getting to that outcome would be less than pleasant. 

Those positive thoughts did nothing to stop the bile rising in his throat at the sight of Thomas Jefferson strutting into the restaurant and sitting in the chair directly across from him. 

“It’s been a while, baby,” he purred, wide smile showing off a set of perfect teeth. Alex cringed as he remembered how sexy he had once thought that smile was - now it seemed positively predatory. 

“It has,” Alex answered, faintly hoarse. Jefferson chuckled, picking up his menu. Neither men said anything, opting instead to scan the menus in silence. Alex felt increasingly uncomfortable, while Thomas looked as unbothered as any man could be. The sub found himself wishing Aaron were here instead of Thomas, but reminded himself of their previous conversation just a few days prior: 

_ “You’re sure you want to do this?” Aaron asked carefully, not fully convinced that this was the smartest route to take. While Aaron had brought up the idea of taping a conversation between Thomas and Alex in order to record a confession of domestic abuse, it had been Alex’s idea to set up the meeting in person. “I’ll get more out of him,” Alex argued, “he loves to talk down to me and it’s much more tempting to do so looking face to face than it would be over the phone, don’t you think?”  _

_ Though Aaron hated to admit it, he couldn’t deny the truth in the statement.  _

Alex was brought back to the present at Jefferson’s pointedly annoyed sound as he cleared his throat. 

“You’re awfully occupied this evening,” the businessman observed, smiling at a waitress who swept past their table. 

“I’m sorry,” Alex forced himself to say, “I just...we haven’t really talked, since -” 

“Since you threw yourself out of my window for no good reason?” Thomas interrupted, barely looking at Alexander while he ripped a packet of sugar open and dumped it into his iced tea. “Honestly, Alex, it was a simple scene. I would’ve been home in just a few minutes.”

“Thomas, you were gone for  _ hours _ -"  
“You disobeyed. You needed to learn.”  
“I was starving, you’d been beating me for days on end -”

“And what else do you think a dirty whore deserves?” Thomas seethed, almost lunging forward as he took hold of Alex’s wrists. Alex froze.  _ Calm down, you’re fine, Aaron’s going to keep you safe… _

“I didn’t come here to be lectured, Alexander,” Thomas continued. His grip on Alex tightened and the sub did his best not to wince but the businessman knew better. “Are you going to shut up and order or should we go talk outside?” Thomas refused to break eye contact, and Alexander relapsed immediately into their old, toxic routine: “No, sir, I’ll behave. I’m sorry.” 

Seemingly satisfied, Thomas released his wrists just as the waitress came up to take their orders. Thomas was all smiles and charms, as if he hadn’t just threatened to take Alex ‘outside’ to do God knows what. It all played out as it had in the past: Thomas ordered for both of them, giving himself something hearty and for Alex, something light and simple. 

_ It’s to keep you slim,  _ Thomas would say.  _ I don’t want to feel like I’m fucking a pig. _

Alex could feel years of hard-earned confidence melting away the longer this meal ticked on. This may not have been as good of an idea as he’d originally hoped. 

When the food finally arrived, the aroma of Thomas’s steak and potatoes nearly made him vomit.  _ Get ahold of yourself, goddamnit,  _ Alex berated himself.  _ Thing of Aaron. Aaron is gentle, kind, strong - like fresh coffee grinds, yeah - he’s fair, and he’s waiting for you outside.  _ He looked up at Thomas, who was watching him closely. 

“Do remember when we first met?” the man asked him suddenly. 

Alex tried not to react too obviously. “I do. Why?” 

“Tell me.” 

Sighing quietly, he placed his fork on the table and cleared his throat. “You’d just had the grand opening of Jefferson Accounting, after moving here from Virginia. You only had three employees, so you offered to take them out for drinks, and the bar you chose just happened to be the one I’d been frequenting for quite a while.” He paused for a second to take a sip of water and ignored Thomas’s impatient sigh. “I’d just gotten out of a relationship with Maria, and I was...I was looking to rebound -” 

Thomas snorted. “Of course you were.” 

Ignoring him again, Alex went on, “You wouldn’t stop watching me flirt with the bartender, and not too long after you came up and introduced yourself.” Alex stopped, fully intended to stop the story right there, but Thomas watched him with a blank expression, clearly waiting to hear the rest. Alex didn’t want to set him off, but he couldn’t push the words out. Thomas leaned forward and took the reigns. 

“Within ten minutes of meeting me, my cock was in your mouth,” Thomas whispered, eyes flashing dangerously. “I really should’ve known from the beginning that you’d be such an unloyal whore, but I kept you anyways.” 

“I’m not something to be  _ kept _ -” 

“You think so? Is that why you asked me to dinner tonight? To try and prove to me that you’re something you’re not?” Thomas laughed harshly. “Not five minutes ago you submitted to me. You called me  _ sir.  _ I still have so much  _ power  _ over you, Alexander.” 

Alex couldn't stop his limbs from trembling, or his words from getting caught in his throat. He flinched, hard, when a hand landed firmly on his shoulder - not like someone struck him, but as if someone was trying to keep him grounded. He smelled Burr’s cologne, not needing to turn around in order to realize his Dom had finally decided enough was enough. 

“Thomas.” Aaron acknowledged the other man with a sharp nod. “Thank you for your time. You gave us everything we needed.”

Thomas smirked at Aaron, although it didn't hold all of the cocky assurance it usually did. “Needed? Needed for…” And that was when he realized the three police officers standing at the entrance of the restaurant, eyes locked firmly on Thomas. Alex pulled the wire and mic out from under his jacket. The two men locked eyes, and Alex did nothing to hide the smirk that pulled at his lips. Thomas didn't say a word; he barely reacted at all. All he did was wipe his mouth with his napkin before he calmly left the table to join the officers. Alex didn't miss the look Thomas shot him before the officers led him out in handcuffs. 

“Alex,” Aaron said, trying to gently break his focus on where the officers were leading Thomas to the cop car. Alex breathed deeply before shifting his attention to Aaron. 

“Hey,” he responded quietly. “Can we go home? Please?” 

Aaron nodded quickly and smiled sweetly at him before leading him toward the exit, now that the cop cars were gone - and with them, Thomas, hopefully out of their lives for the long foreseeable future. He could tell Alex was in no place to handle decisions right now, so he helped Alex by giving him small, seemingly unnoticeable directions: 

“Seatbelt, Alexander.”   
“Can you get the door?”  
“Go ahead and change into your pajamas, Alexander.”

Once home and once Alex had done as Aaron had asked by changing into pajamas, he didn't know what to do with himself. As tired as he was, he could not stop the nagging in his mind to drop into subspace. Aware of how he would've struggled in the past, he didn't hesitate to go and drop to his knees beside where Aaron was sitting. He breathed deeply, focusing on his own submission. He felt Aaron’s hand rest atop of his head, stroking gently, helping Alex drop. Aaron barely hid his surprise. 

“Stay here,” Aaron told him, and left to grab something from the kitchen. He returned with a bowl and a spoon, the bowl containing Alex’s favorite - Oreo pudding. 

Aaron fed him slowly, giving him small compliments and gentle touches every once in awhile. All traces of tension left Alex’s body; all that was left was sleepy adoration in the sub’s eyes. 

“Thank you,” Alex said, so soft Aaron could've missed it if he hadn't been so focused on the sub’s every move. 

“There's nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Alexander. I gave up my job to keep you safe. I made a promise to you and I intend to keep it.” 

Aaron didn't miss the way Alex’s lip quivered as he tried not to let the tears fall; Alex didn't miss the way Aaron’s hands tightened in his hair as he reaffirmed his promise. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also - I recognize that I hinted toward a secret or hidden story in Aaron's past near the beginning of this series. This will be brought to light in the next series, as soon as I'm able to start it. :)


End file.
